Fool's Advance
by RadioRegicide
Summary: He couldn't save her mother from the fate he'd forced upon her, but Gray would save Ultear even if it was a fool's errand. He owed her that; a second chance at life. Because no cause was lost whilst there was but one fool left to fight for it. None would stand before the advance of the oncoming fool. Graytear; post GMG, AU. Rating may increase, dark/adult themes ahead.
1. Isvan

_**Fool's Advance**_

**Chapter I** – _Isvan_

**Date: October 1****st****, X791**

The bitter northern chill felt even better than Gray remembered. Sighing, he stepped out from under the shelter of Isvan station, hands tucked into the pockets of his pants as he looked around. The little town was just like he remembered; one of those Winter Solstice greeting cards brought to life, with white coating the buildings and street lamps burning brightly against the oncoming dusk, the wind kicking up a fuss as it tossed a parade of snow back up into the air.

Yet the place was busier than he would've thought for this time of year, bigger than he remembered too. It must have been market day, he realised as he descend the station steps to the street below. It was good to see the years had not discouraged the townsfolk; they were still as resilient and active as they had been all those longs years ago, when he'd lived nearby with Ur. Even now he could hear vendors shouting about their goods over the roar of the wind as they battled for the attention of the rowdy crowd spread around them.

Shaking his head, he almost rolled his eyes at the avalanche of snow that tumbled down over his eyes. It felt good, he had to admit – a part of him was home at long last. _I never thought I'd actually come back here…_ behind him he could hear the crunch of snow as his companions walked down the stone steps to join him at the path's edge.

"Chilly," he had to struggle not to make a sarcastic comment in response. The speaker had been the shortest of their small group, a young woman with wavy pink hair, bundled up in more heavy cloaks, woolly mittens, scarfs and hats (plus ear-muffs) than Gray had imaged humanly possible. Teeth chattering, she pulled her wears tighter around her still, shooting a wistful look back at the warm and cosy station.

"You were expecting sunshine and rainbows, I take it, Meredy?" the tallest countered, garbed in his dark cloak and baggy pants, distinct staffs slung across his back on a harness. The girl just stuck her tongue out at him before turning away to pout. She'd never been so far north before, so Gray would cut her some slack. Still, he was rather impressed by how Jellal, disguised as Mystogan, didn't seem bothered in the least by the conditions he'd found himself in. Not that he'd actually show it if he was.

Glancing over his shoulder, Gray looked up for the last of their group who had not said a word since they got on the train hours ago. Calling on her to catch her attention, he asked: "You all right, Erza?"

Still stood at the top of the stairs, the scarlet haired young woman was frowning, looking at something off in the distance that Gray could not see. She too was wearing a heavy fur coat, though only one, whilst having swapped out her usual skirt for thick pants and dawning a long sleeved top underneath her usual armour.

Shaking her head, she turned back to Gray and the others, walking down the steps to join them. "We're being followed," she said in hushed voice when she reached them, and Gray chanced a glance at Jellal who nodded his agreement.

"Since before we passed Mt. Hakobe." _What the hell?_ He hadn't felt anything, granted he'd had the nasty feeling someone was burning holes into the back of his head for a while but he'd just assumed it was the girl from across the compartment who had not been coy in her appreciation of him. "We should continue as normal,"

"Agreed." Erza said, pulling some of her hair into a high pony-tail to stop the wind playing with it so much, leaving her face partially obscured by the hair that escaped confinement, making her look like Knightwalker. "If we're being followed our best option is to feign ignorance until whatever it is slips up and we can catch them."

Gray nodded his assent to the plan, whilst Meredy gave a muffled aye of agreement from beside him.

"We should have a quick look around first," Gray decided, turning away from the others to look back at the town of Isvan once more. "It should give me a chance to get my barrings again and maybe I can find someone I used to know who we can talk to." This was his mission after all, or rather it had been his idea to do this; the others had just agreed to follow him on this goose chase for their own reasons.

"It'll be dark soon," Erza said as she nodded towards the fading sun, which had just fallen behind a heard of think, greying clouds. _Storms coming… _Gray frowned, whilst snow was almost a daily part of life this far north he still didn't want to get caught in a heavy blizzard if he could avoid it. The townsfolk had clearly noticed the oncoming clouds and were beginning to bustle themselves into a frenzy of activity, gathering up their things and heading for the safety of their homes. "Maybe we should wait until tomorrow to being our search,"

"There used to be an old inn a few streets down from here, it should still be there," he said, Erza was right – Gray wanted to argue, but he knew better: they were all tiered and stiff from the long train ride and he was pretty sure the others still need more time to adjust to the climate before being subjected to prolonged periods of the cold.

Shaking the snow out of his hair once more, he gestured with a nod of his head for the others to follow his lead.

Gray had worked tirelessly for months to get to this point; another day wouldn't make a difference in the grand scheme of things. Because in his heart he knew. He knew that come tomorrow, one way or the other, he and his friends would finally find Ultear Milkovich.

* * *

**Because, sometimes, all it takes to keep a ship afloat is one stubborn dope who doesn't know how to get off and a whole load of duct tape. Don't forget to be awesome, people and I'll catch you next time. Radio Regicide is blasting off again! **


	2. Resolve

_**Next one will be longer, I swear.**_

* * *

_**Fool's Advance**_

**Chapter II** –_ Resolve_

**Date: October 2****nd****, X791**

Gray didn't know how long he'd been standing under the showerhead for; the water had since become a biting cold so it must've been for a lot longer than he'd intended. Thankfully the cold water didn't bother him, if anything, for someone who had been subjugated to ice baths as part of his training it was _almost_ soothing. It was familiar and that offered him some comfort.

The bathroom was a plain affair, the wooden floorboards groaned whenever anyone stepped on them and the tiled walls were a pale, greying white and the facilities weren't exactly on par with his bathroom back home; the fact the shower pressure sucked might have been his own fault though. At least the bathroom was an ensuite, he admitted as he found it in himself to reach out and turn the shower off. If the inn had communal bathroom's he probably would have long since been evicted by other angry patrons – if there actually was anyone else staying at the run down old dump.

Stepping out of the shower he ran a hand through his dripping wet hair and realised just how badly he needed to get it cut, his hair having grown out somewhat with his attention elsewhere. He grabbed blindly for the towel that hung somewhere on the wall next to the sink before snatching it off the rack, giving his hair a quick dry with the dull blue cotton before wrapping it around his waist.

Decent, he made for the door so he could grab some clean clothes from his bag but out of the corner of his eye he couldn't help but see himself in the steamed up mirror that hung above the sink. Giving the mirror a wipe with the palm of his hand, he frowned at the person that looked back out at him. He looked a mess, they _had_ been travelling for days, the stubble was a testament to that, as were the bags were begging to form under his eyes – rattling train carriages and inn beds that might have been made out of stone weren't exactly what he'd call comfortable.

Nothing that a quick shave and a good meal wouldn't fix, as the food was probably the only positive thing the Ice-Make Mage had to say about the Red Rook Inn. Still, the elderly couple that ran the place didn't have any help to call upon, so Gray would cut them some slack on things like crappy beds.

Having dug his razor and shaving cream out from the depths of his bag, he tried hopping back into the bathroom on one foot as he tried to pull his briefs on one handed. It was a good thing Jellal had vanished before he'd even gotten in the shower; he really didn't want nor need an audience for this.

Gray eventually managed his surprising monumental task, and snatched the cream back out of the sink where he'd dropped it and set to work on getting rid of stubble which plagued his face. Facial hair had never suited him, yet at the same time he hated shaving: it seemed like a lot of effort to keep himself looking good, only to have the stubble back within a day or two.

Still it distracted him, gave him something to do other than be along with his thoughts.

He was getting to the point were he wasn't sure how much longer he could keep this up – his search grew evermore draining the longer it dragged on. Admittedly, he was beginning to get desperate to find Ultear; or at least some sort of reliable clue or witness who could point him in the right direction. He needed to find something to go on soon because he had a sinking suspicion that if something didn't come up during this trip Erza would put an end to his self-given mission whether he agreed or not.

That was probably why she had come, Gray thought as he rinsed some of the cream of his razor; she knew he was grasping at straws with his visit to Isvan. Erza was giving him this one last chance to get a solid lead on Ultear, or she would pull the plug. Part of him wondered if Gramps had secretly ordered her to do such, but he knew the redhead well enough to know she'd probably do it even if Makarov hadn't told her to do so.

Erza didn't seem to understand just how important this was to him, and if he was totally honest the dark haired young Mage didn't quite understand it all either. He understood what had motivated him to undergo this quest; guilt, desperation, a need for atonement. He wouldn't let Ultear's life slip away when he could still repay the debut he owed her - she'd saved him, just like her mother had before her and whilst he couldn't save Ur from the fate he'd forced on her, he still had a chance to save Ultear.

Though even he couldn't deny that there was something more driving him forward. In the end it didn't matter, Gray decided once he found Ultear things would sort themselves out as they always did, that was all the dark haired young man needed to know. This was something Gray had to do, even if he wasn't completely clear on why – he just knew he _needed_ to finish this; see it through to the bitter end if that's what it took.

Isvan was all he had left and he knew the little town would come through for him one way or the other. He just knew this would be where things would finally turn around, after months of dead ends and false leads. It _had_ to be. He wouldn't accept any other alternative.

And with that thought in mind, Gray splashed himself clean, making sure to get the last of the shaving cream before nodding at his reflection. The trip was young yet; Makarov had given him a week to conduct his search – not including the time it took to travel between Magnolia and Isvan.

And when one minute could make all the difference in the world, alter the course of life and death, seven days was a lifetime for Gray. Pushing away from the sink he headed back into his room to get dressed, then he would join the others and their search would really begin.

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**I realise these two chapters I've put out so far aren't the most exciting in the world, but bear with me please things will pick up quickly. Thanks for reading, and don't forget to be awesome. Looks like Radio Regicide is blasting off again!**


	3. Legacy

**Much later than intended, and for that I apologise. My excuses are meaningless at this point, so I won't bother. Lets just get on with things, shall we?**

* * *

_**Fool's Advance**_

**Chapter III** – Legacy

**Date: October 2****nd****, X791**

It was just after noon when Gray decided to take a break from his search.

Dropping down onto the steps of the old public library, he leaned back into the crumbling stones as he folded his arms over his chest. After an uneventful breakfast the group decided that the best course of action for the day would be to simply acquaint themselves with the town, Gray's memory not being as good as he'd thought, they needed to compile a list of places Ultear might have been or people she might have had contact with if she'd even just stopped by in Isvan for a few days.

Gray had settled for trying to get used to all the changes that had occurred in the many years since he had last visited. He'd been right in his suspicions, the town had defiantly gotten bigger than when he'd been a boy. A part of him wondered if that had anything to do with the fact a guild had supposedly been set up somewhere near the old town, though the members would've still lived within Isvan.

Erza had decided it would prove prudent to make contact with the guild and establish a relationship with them, not that Gray cared one way or the other. Still, her idea of broaching them about any strange goings on around town didn't sound like a bad idea – worst case scenario the guild told Ezra to get lost and they just carried on with their mission, no worse off than before.

He honestly had no idea where either Meredy or Jellal had gone. He suspected Jellal had gone to check out the guild with Erza, or keep an eye on Erza whilst she approached the unfamiliar guild whilst Meredy took the opportunity to venture around town on her own without fear of being recognised as a member of a former dark guild.

Sighing, he closed his eyes, wondering whether he should maybe find somewhere to eat before he resumed his exploration. The morning had been a bust: he'd returned to the main square after being told by the old innkeeper that the market would resume due to ending early on account of the storm. He hadn't recognised any of the vendors and likewise no one had recognised him and he was all but consumed by the bustle and noise, just part of the crowd.

_I was only eight the last time I was here, _he supposed. He'd only been Ur's pupil for nine months and they'd only ever come into town when they needed to - it'd been seventeen years; he honestly didn't know why he had expected anything any different.

Still, he couldn't help but feel optimistic. Why, he had no idea.

It was odd, ever since they'd arrived the day before Gray had felt recharged, like he'd gotten a second wind – that he could accomplish anything; even take on Erza. For some reason or another he just felt better than he had in months; stronger, faster. The sinking feeling of wrongness that had hung over him ever since he'd, for all intents and purposes, been brought from the dead at the Grand Magic Games utterly gone. He didn't know what should have unsettled him more; the fact such a grim, dark feeling had been following him for months, or that it suddenly vanished upon his return to Isvan.

In stark contrast everyone in town seemed troubled and on edge, all of them looked drained and terrified of just about anything and everything. Still, these were proud people, and northerners did not show fear easily, especially to outsiders. Gray knew this better than anyone because, long ago, he'd been one of them.

It bothered him that Erza, Jellal and Meredy seemed to have not escaped whatever it was that had affected townsfolk; all of them commenting at breakfast that something just felt _off_. None of them had really been able to elaborate further, to which Gray could relate, but Meredy seemed to have been hit harder than the others; he heard Jellal saying to Erza that he'd never seen her so pale nor so quite and jumpy, he suspected her magic was somehow amplifying the effects of whatever was going on.

Gray on the other had just couldn't find it in him to be even remotely negative. But the logical part of his brain kept telling him he should be worried – why was he out of everyone the only one that didn't seem to be affected by the dark presence that hung over the town like a shroud? Why had he felt as he did until arriving in Isvan, but now felt ready to take on the world? What was it that singled him out in all of this?

Shaking his head, he pushed himself up off the steps before dusting off the flecks of snow still clinging to his clothes. Stuffing his hands into his pockets he decided to head back into the centre of town and try to find the others before getting something to eat and maybe swap any information they had to share, but he stopped at the sound of someone calling his name.

"Gray Fullbuster! It is you, isn't it?" Blinking in confusion, Gray watched as a decrepit old man who must have been Makarov's age hobbled down the street towards him. The old man was his own height, a gaggle of bony limbs and faded furs with weathered, wrinkled skin that seemed to drop and sag in the most unnatural way possible. Watery blue eyes seemed bright with joy as the old man waved at him, his scraggly, wispy white bread wiping about his face in the breeze.

"Uh, can I help you?" Gray asked at a loss for how else to respond to this old man.

"You mean to say you don't remember me?" The old geezer wailed in an offended tone of voice, looking put out as he almost fell over once he reached the Ice-Make Mage. Limbs failing wildly, Gray took pity on the old man and reached out to help him steady him, regardless of the rant the old fart was throwing in his direction. "Damned brat, to think Ur never taught you any manners at all! Honestly, how could you forget one such as myself? Covetous Blige, at your service: merchant and procurer of rare treasures and explorer extraordinaire!"

And at that moment Gray felt like the world had been pulled out from under him and he almost let the old man fall in his shock. This man couldn't be Covetous Blige, he just _couldn't_.

The Covetous Blige he remembered had been a hardened mass of muscle, a fierce looking man if there ever was one that liked to joke about fight grizzly bears for fun – and looked like he could do it. A self-proclaimed merchant and explorer he had been a friend of Ur's who had often done favour's for her; whenever she'd wanted something found, something of the rare and valuable kind that she couldn't get herself, Covetous was the one she asked to get it for her.

Now he was old enough to put more thought to it, Gray wondered just how many of these items Covetous came across honestly and how many of them he'd stolen. Ur had always claimed he was the best at what he did, so the dark haired Mage had never questioned her further. The now elderly man had also been notorious for being a scoundrel, and whilst Covetous never did hide his blatant interest in Gray's old mentor, he'd always been professional and smart enough to play by the 'look, but don't touch' rules and made sure to keep his hands to himself.

"Didn't recognise me, eh?" Covetous laughed, grinning whilst slapping Gray's back heartily, his earlier comments clearly meant more as ribs more than anything else. "Relax boy, I'm not surprised. But look at you, eh! T'would seem the years have been kinder to some of us than other, eh? Arrived in town this morning after running a few errands and heard some interesting rumours going around," he added on, grabbing one of Gray's upper arms and dragging him with freighting strength towards one of the nearby public benches, "that some Mages from Fairy Tail had come to town. After asking around, I realised from the description that one of 'em was you, saw you during the Games, I did. Would have made Ur proud, you would've – damned proud."

"Thanks," Gray said, grumbling a little as he rubbed his arm, such a skinny old man should have not been so strong. Looking down at the old man, now sat on the bench, the Ice-Make Mage asked: "Listen, Covetous, not that it isn't nice to see you again," _And weird as hell, _"do you need something? I'm kinda in the middle of something."

"Boy, you'll never get anywhere with an attitude like that," Covetous said, tone joking. But added in a more serious voice, "Can't an old man want to see how some of the youth he once knew has grown?" Gray just frowned. "You really ain't changed much, I see," the old merchant added, shaking his head adding something about standoffishness to which Gray grunted in response.

"If you're going to be like that I guess we can get straight to business, then: I have something for you." Blinking, Gray was admittedly surprised. Wondering what on earth it could be, the young Mage watched as the merchant swung his large bag of wears off his back and proceeded to start digging around inside it. "A little something from Ur; she gave it to me before she went after you when you went to go chase that demon Deliora."

Gray was glad Covetous was too busy rummaging around in his bag to see him wince – a nasty feeling twisting in the pit of his stomach. Still, a moment later the old man was pulling a large folder out of his bag; huge amounts of aging paper tied together with several pieces of string and numerous note books stacked on top of one an other.

"Ur's last gift to you, her legacy," Covetous said, voice booming across the street in declaration as he handed over the folder. "From memory it was a lot of the material she never taught you herself, most of which you might have figured out on your own but there's also a good bit of her research and development of Maker Magic and something about fusion or the like in there for you to look over as well."

_Fusion? What the hell is he talking about…? _Gray took the folder with gratitude, turning it on its side to see it was much large than first glance led him to believe. He couldn't understand how the old man had actually kept it all these years, let alone that the onetime he came back Covetous was able to find him and deliver it.

"Smile, damn it, boy," Covetous said, scolding him, "it won't kill you to do it every once in awhile. Should be proud, you should, Ur gave explicit instructions that this was to be given to you and only you, no others. Not even that other white haired prat of a boy she taught, the one who followed her around like a lost pup."

Nodding his appreciation, Gray pulled the strap of his satchel overhead so he could tuck the folder away in his own bag. _Even if the old man is right and this is all stuff I learnt on my own there's got to be some reason Ur would want me to have this. _Why else would the folder contain what looked like Ur's personal research? And what did fusion have to do with Ice-Make Magic? All that aside, part of him couldn't help but feel rather smug that Ur had chosen him over Lyon to be the one to carry on and finish her research.

"Thanks," Gray said eventually, not sure what else there was to say.

"Think nothing off it," Covetous waved him off, "just tell me something before we part ways again. Why the hell did you come back here after all these years? I was convinced I'd have to track you down in Magnolia to pass those notes on the way things were going."

"I'm looking for someone," Gray replied, which was true, but there was no reason to tell the old man exactly who. "Part of me figured this was a good a place as any to look for some leads." The old man nodded sagely, a tint of understanding in his eye, but otherwise said nothing to confirm or disprove Gray's suspicions.

"Well you keep yourself outta trouble whilst you're here, you hear me? There's something afoul in this town of late, and I hear you Fairy Tail lot have a knack for trouble and destruction."

"What exactly is going on anyway? Anyone I've asked about what's going seems to afraid to give me a straight answer." Gray demanded. He'd been meaning to turn away and leave, but the old merchant seemed to know just what to say to keep his interest awhile longer.

"Something dark has crept into the town. Something evil," Covetous shuddered, clearly uneasy but nonetheless he seemed determined to talk. "I don't just mean run of the mill dark guild evil, I mean _pure_, depths of hell kind of evil, boy. Everyone can feel it, in their bones, the never ending terror and paranoia, almost like death itself has come to live in this town.

"People have been going missing only to come back, but whatever they are when they come back sure as hell ain't human." Gray was confused, but Covetous still had more to say. "They stink of burnt bones and rotting flesh, I hear. Skin hanging from the bone and eyes without soul or heart and chests filled with a pale fire. The sound of rattling chains forge of hell fire rings where Death walks among a parade of living corpses... Or so some are saying, personally I just reckon it's their paranoia."

"_Ghouls_?" Gray hissed, eyes widening, the old man really knew how to knock a person off balance. Rumoured sightings or not, ghouls were serious business. Ghouls meant a Necromancer and necromancy was strictly forbidden. Necromancy in all forms was one of the most serious crimes a Mage could commit. Being found guilty of using or even _attempting_ to research necromancy was punishable by death without trial, or chance for appeal.

It was the Fifth Law of Magic: thou salt not tamper with the cycle of life and death. _What the hell is going on here? Why hasn't the guild here dealt with this already if there really is a necromancer here?_

There were too many question and not enough answers, damn it. Closing his eyes, Gray took a deep needed to find Erza and the others, but first he needed everything the old man could give him on these supposed ghouls. "Why hasn't the guild here done something about these possible sightings?"

"Council law, ain't it?" Covetous barked out a laugh, "The Harlequin's are bound to work inside the system because there's no proof that the ghouls are real. Council doesn't want to start a panic, make itself look weak by admitting someone might have managed to master the dark arts of necromancy. There's a reason necromancy is so rare, boy, most kill themselves with it or are driven mad before they can ever achieve anything. But everyone hundred years or so there comes one, a person with a soul blacker than the hide of the Dragon of the Apocalypse who's twisted enough to learn does dark arts, to _master_ them and they always remind everyone why necromancers are among the most fear of all dark Mages."

"So what, the guild here has decided to just sit and wait it out?" Gray demanded, what kind of Mages could let this happen? For all he knew, this new guild was the one responsible in the first place.

"What would you have them do?" The old man said, and Covetous looked at him like he was eight years old again - a little boy shouting about the world when he didn't know how it worked. "The council would have them all charged with conspiracy, they'd see wild allegations of ghoul sightings with no proof as someone stirring up trouble and trying to create nation wide panic. I mean, imagine the tabloids if papers suddenly heard about the possibility of a real necromancer on the rise. The council mean well and good, but they strangle themselves and those who report to them with their own bloody laws. Just keep your head down, boy. Things would be a lot worse around here if Harlequin's Tear didn't keep an eye on things."

"Thanks again, old man," Gray said, nodding as he ran a hand through his hair, resign himself to his inability to act for the time being. If he wanted to look into this further he would have to speak with this Harlequin's Tear guild, this was their territory. Maybe Erza's idea wasn't such a bad move after all.

Covetous just gave a dry bark in response, "No need to thank me, boy. Just don't get yourself killed trying to fix what's going on around here, the Harlequin's will keep us safe if there really are ghouls running around. Oh and one last thing," the merchant called out as Gray had begun to walk down the street back into the centre of town in search of the others. "If you're planning on visiting Ur's old home you should know some old woman bought the place and moved in not long ago, not sure she'd appreciate some stranger come a calling by unannounced!"

_Old lady?_ But when Gray turned to ask more about this old lady, Covetous was gone. He hated it when people did that.

_Whatever_, turning around the Ice-Make Mage knew he had more important things he needed to focus on; he could wonder about how the hell Covetous moved so fast another time.

All that mattered at that moment was figuring out what the hell was going on in Isvan and finding Ultear. Everything else was secondary.

* * *

**This chapter is about a thousand words longer than intended. So much for a slow, smooth transition into longer chapters. **

**Either way I'm pleased with the end result of this chapter, a lot of ground work was set here, and there should be some exciting things to come in the next few chapters. Also, next chapter, Ultear. Finally. Hope you enjoyed the read, folks and don't forget to be awesome. **

**Looks like Radio Regicide is blasting off again! **


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